Editorial - 26-2

How many of the recommendations by the Expert Panel Report on Federal Support for Business R&D will the Harper government include in the next Budget? Given Canada's low productivity and competitiveness rankings and the rapid embrace of innovation by emerging nations, the status quo isn't an option.

Judging by the recent statements from the prime minister and other ministers, the R&D tax credit program can expect an overhaul, with savings re-allocated to new or existing programs that provide direct support. Government procurement is a relatively easy measure to introduce as a pilot program is already up and running and could be expanded and made permanent.

After that it gets tricky. The Panel calls for: placing innovation at the centre of the government's economic strategy and identifying a lead minister for innovation; establishing an Industrial Research and Innovation Council (IRIC) to deliver business-facing programs and developing a talent strategy; and last but certainly not least, spinning off the National Research Council's institutes in different directions depending on their research focus.

Making innovation a key economic priority is a bold move that necessitates a range of other actions to integrate it into government operations. IRIC would be a controversial move that could be put off until other recommendations are implemented. The NRC is already well into a transformation of its own. Will the government seek to move in a different direction or attempt to merge the two concepts?

Whatever the outcome, the Budget is shaping up to be the most critical to the research community in at least a decade.